Category Archives: Northeast

The Austro-Hungarian Empire seems like a historic place in a very distant past, but for Irene Abrams, its presence is ingrained in her vivid memory of her beloved grandparents and their journey to America. “My grandfather was a rope maker. He was very tall and strong. My “Zaida” was six feet tall. My “Bubba” was tiny, she was five feet ... Read More »

After being imprisoned by Nazis in Austria, Herb Neuwalders family was split apart throughout the war. Neuwalder, a Jewish dentist, moved to Italy. His wife (not Jewish) stayed in Vienna. His son and daughter through Kinder Transport, went to separate foster families in England. Herb was eventually imprisoned again in an Italian Concentration Camp. The family was reunited in Italy ... Read More »

Lottie Burger left Stuttgart, Germany because of anti-semitism in April 1938 at the age of eight with her mother, father, and grandmother. As there was no port in Germany they traveled first to France to depart, where her grandmother took her underground to see the subway for the first time. They arrived in New York on the Queen Mary and ... Read More »

Polly Bergtraun grew up in Holland during the time of the Holocaust. When she was a teenager, Holland was raided by the Nazi’s. Every year after the Nazi occupation the situation for Jewish people worsened. She was forced out of her school and her home and she had to give her valuables to the Nazi party. As the situation became ... Read More »

Dey Rose was one of 8 featured storytellers at the Media Center’s salon called “Foreign Correspondents: Immigrant Odysseys.” Her story, recorded in this 10 minute video, is about her grandmother. She has also submitted this story in writing here. Dey is an instructor in the Stanford Graduate School of Education. Read More »

(Editor’s Note: Many folks have only the sketchiest of details about their family’s immigration to the U.S. The following account captures “the missing years” through a creative, entertaining perspective imagined through the mind of a descendent who in turn is imagined by an even later descendent – the author of this account.) Rudolph Lupien sharpens his pencils methodically, as though ... Read More »

John Edminster was a young soldier in the English Civil War. He fought with a Scottish army allied with Charles II of England, against the English Puritan leader, Oliver Cromwell. Cromwell won the war, and John was captured by the Puritans at the Battle of Worcester in 1651. Cromwell wanted to sell the prisoners as slaves. Some were sent to ... Read More »

When I was first getting started to begin writing this story, I felt as if this was going to be a difficult topic for me. After watching all the stories on madeintoamerica.org I did not think that my story had anywhere near the same difficulties. I have lived in the same culture my entire life, and I was born into ... Read More »

I am from Naples, Italy. Naples is a beautiful city. But October 1, 1943 when the American troops finally came in the city, Naples was a big gigantic mess. No electricity, no gas, no water and no food, just garbage everywhere. You see, when the German troops left they blew up and destroyed whatever was left. Anyway, I’ve barely started ... Read More »

(Editor’s Note: This is a bit of a departure from the usual format. It is a fascinating research paper written by Maddie Bennet, for her 11th grade US History class at Kehillah Jewish High School in Palo Alto, CA.) I am a third generation American Jew, and, like many Jews, my roots go back to Eastern Europe. My research focuses ... Read More »